Max Pink Trombone is a 1-1 port of the amazing Pink Trombone parametric vocal synthesizer for Max/MSP. By closely modeling the acoustics and physical properties of the human mouth (tongue + lip position, air pressure, vocal cord tension, etc.), Pink Trombone can synthesize realistic human voices in real-time.
The goal of this patch is to leverage the incredible real-time voice synthesis of Pink Trombone inside the powerful and flexible interface of Max/MSP for the creation of experimental live performances that explore synthesized speech. This patcher sounds exactly like the original, and even includes a recreation of the GUI which functions identically.
Additional features of MPT enabled by the Max/MSP environment:
- Polyphony: run as many simultaneous instances of Pink Trombone as you’d like (subject to CPU limitations). Control an entire Pink Trombone chorus!
- MIDI input: control Pink Trombone by using your MIDI instrument to trigger notes or by mapping knobs, sliders, aftertouch, etc. to expressive parameters (volume, tension, vibrato, etc.)
- Decoupled glottis (vocal cords) + vocal tract modules: filter the glottis output to create distinct vocal timbres or replace the glottis output with a different audio source entirely for a vocoder-like effect
- Incorporate Pink Trombone into an existing patch for additional filtering, i.e. EQ, or other wacky signal processing
See the Instagram post above for an example of MPT in action. The patch uses a Leap Motion hand tracking camera and MPT to enable speech through precise hand gestures with MIDI controlling the pitches. It requires a LOT of practice to use.